New NCT Regulations

You are now be able to put your car through the NCT car test any time before their normal NCT date under new measures that were announced on July 28th 2014.

Before this announcement you could get your car tested 90 days prior to the due date. This has changed and since the 28th July, you can pick your own date in advance.

The new arrangements could give respite to owners of cars approaching the 10-year-old mark. If they test their cars more than 90 days before the due NCT date they will get a two-year certificate. If they don't, they will get one year as cars over 10 years old have to be tested annually.

For the first time too, owners will get the mileage of their car – and up to three previous recordings – printed on their NCT certificate.

This is part of an attempt to prevent the practice of 'clocking' where mileage is turned back by unscrupulous sellers to enhance the value of the car. Owners will have to verify that the mileage shown at the time of their test is correct.

And those from the motor trade who book a test at short notice will now have to show their driving licence or a Trade Management System fob at the NCT centre. The NCT say this is designed to bring greater transparency to transactions.

The greater flexibility on testing times should also help anyone wishing to buy or sell a car because the vehicle's road worthiness will be more up to date.

Road Safety Authority (RSA) chief executive Moyagh Murdock said printing mileage on the certificate will help to "combat fraudulent activity by unscrupulous sellers and make things easier for those in the second-hand car trade".

It is expected that the voluntary early testing will also help change the pattern of NCT inspections throughout the year by reducing demand at busier times.

Around 50% of the vehicle fleet is due an NCT in the first three months of the year. This is because most new cars have traditionally been bought in that period and this naturally puts pressure on the service around these months.

Of the cars that were tested in the first six months of 2014, 369,724 (49%) passed with 381,822 failing; a further 2,646 were found to be dangerously non-roadworthy.

Test cancelation fees apply as they did before. Cancelation of a booked test will cost €22 (€11.50 for a re-test) unless owners give at least five clear working days notice. The charge will be processed when the car is eventually tested.

The cost of the test has also stayed the same. It costs €55 for the full test and €28 for a re-test, if NCT equipment has to be used. A re-test is free only if it requires a visual inspection.

Having a fully roadworthy car is essential to your safety and the safety of other road users. As well as having an in date NCT for your car it is also a legal requirement to have insurance for your car. Car insurance is an extremely important thing to have when it comes to owning a car. It covers you financially in the event of an accident. By law, you are not allowed to drive a car unless you are insured to drive that car.

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